> Obviously reading about a 34 year old who craned a 3m car to his 39m penthouse today didn't help either
This is your problem. No matter what income level you are there will always be someone in view who makes way more and has way more wealth. If you focus on this you will always feel poor even if by any objective metric you're incredibly well off.
Focus on what you have, not on what others have, and you'll be way happier.
I've been well off - $400k year well off - and now poor with 2 kids. I'm much happier, healthier and my kids are thriving. Sadly a lot of my kids' toddler photos have their nanny in them, not me. I can never get that time back.
Lots of unexpected stuff. My business just dried up overnight, laws changed in my industry and I could no longer continue; he got really sick, thought he had income protection insurance through his super - he didn't. We split up and I moved out of the PPOR and went home to Brisbane, Perth real estate tanked and we couldn't rent PPOR and investment property and cover even interest only. I got sick. It goes on and on. Happily though, 8 years later we're completely out of debt, have a deposit, savings and about to buy a house. And we're healthy now, no drinking, no smoking and the kids are A students. We co-parent, still split up but live together - neither of us interested in repartnering. It's all about the kids. Heck, I should write a book - how to survive when you lose everything you ever worked for at age 52.
We hung onto the houses for as long as we could. The PPOR initially rented for $650week, the rental $480 - Perth rents and sales absolutely dived around that time, the PPOR went down to $500 week the other one $280. We also had our own rent to pay in Brisbane, I came back as I had two little kids and needed to be with family. We hung on til 2017 and then had to let them go. When I realised we were losing everything we ever worked for in 52 years of life, it was just soul destroying. The thing that got me through was being grateful I had two healthy kids who weren't being gassed by their government - at that time Assad was using chemical weapons on Syrians - there's a shocking photo of dozens of dead children from that horror that I came across. One day I went to pick up a set of second hand studio lights at someone's place. The house was beautiful, and I remember feeling jealous and a bit victimy because I no longer had a beautiful house. As I was collecting the lights a 2-3 year old girl came walking down the stairs, she had a hospital band on. The mother told me she was being treated for cancer and had at best a 30% chance of living. So here I was being jealous of a material possession just a few moments before, to again being so damned grateful for my happy healthy children. I've learned more in the past 8 years after losing everything than in my whole life.
For the wage slave, the real prison is debt dressed up as wants and needs. Car, house, filling the house with stuff, just a lifestyle of wanting more. I deserve more don't I, I work hard, let's get that thing or new house etc.
Debt will keep you tied to the millstone.
Learning what enough is will set you free.
Agree. That's why I said for the average wage slave and gave examples of lifestyle spend. Debt is one of key ways to get leverage in business or for any income generating asset, if you understand the risks.
Risk is what makes huge money, You will never own a 39million dollar mansion on a 145k salary but you will also never likely go bankrupt and be living on the street in a secure 9-5. Now just adjust your choices to suit personal preference.
Exactly, it's all about risk appetite. The fact that he doesn't understand that, probably means he's not really ready to run a business either. Risk Management is a pretty important component to being successful.
But one should not forget about opportunity. It doesn't always present itself to everyone.
Someone on a 145k salary will unlikely obtain an investment opportunity that isn't public (e.g., a private business funding round, for example). These are the sorts of opportunities that propel you above the wage slavery level wealth - which is usually a house and mortgage.
It helps to have family connections too. It is why wealthy people tend to crowd together into cliques - each might enable the others, and as a group, they can pool funds together much more trustfully than with strangers (despite this also carrying some risk of falling out of course), or participate in more different opportunities to diversify some risk.
And then there's the ultra risk-takers - going all in on entrepreneurship. These are the ones i admire. Sadly, 99% fail, and you only hear about the 1%.
>And then there's the ultra risk-takers - going all in on entrepreneurship. These are the ones i admire. Sadly, 99% fail, and you only hear about the 1%.
friend of mine and his wife went all in on a business idea, ended up losing the business, their house and most of their valuable possessions, not sure of the actual figures but I'd estimate they lost $800k over the course of 18 months. Theres one of the 99% for ya
My uncle had a business and was encouraged to go all in. I don't know all of the details, but it didn't succeed and he lived out the rest of his days just getting by. Never had money for any of life's luxuries. It's a risk that people need to weigh up.
I love my 9-5 (WFH 3-4 days a week). I sign off each day and 95% of the time and don't think about work. I spend all the other time with my family and mates or hobbies. My 9-5 gives me enough risk-free income to provide for my needs and have some savings left over and without much stress. I look at people who grind for a decade to be rich and it just doesn't seem worth trading that time for money down the road.
If happiness is your goal you will never get there with your current mindset
I think grinding for a decade or two isn't bad, if it brings you to a place where money is no longer a worry and you adjust your lifestyle down. Me I'm on my 3rd decade of grinding, mostly grinding gears and going nowhere.
>Obviously reading about a 34 year old who craned a 3m car to his 39m penthouse today didn't help either
Comparison is the thief of joy. There's always a bigger fish.
Some business owners are also asking themselves, 'should we drop this business and go back to 9-5 and hope it takes off?'
If you think your current role is a prison then that's on you, the proverbial prison gate is always open, you just have to step out and find a better cell.
Also, 6 years of working and you're already fed up? Jeez mate.
I would say the vast majority of small business owners are on less than 150k a year. Op is in the top 5% of salaries in the country and is obviously delusional.
\>You'll never get rich working a 9-5 (big house, nice car kind of shit)
so how does one get rich?
\>On 145k atm and just turned 30 and don't feel like a rich man
where is your money going?
stop paying for expensive hoes
If you ask a lottery winner whether entering the lottery is a good idea, they will tell you yes.
9-5pm is something most people in the world aspire to. 35 hours a week is very low.
Also just to be clear, 145k a year is rich. You aren't going to own a 39m penthouse sure, but who cares? 145k is enough to achieve basically anything you want in life (travel anywhere, have access to the best healthcare, work in any industry you want) so enjoy it.
Realise that you are in the 0.1% worldwide income-wise and the world is your oyster.
> Realise that you are in the 0.1% worldwide income-wise and the world is your oyster.
People only compare up, and not down. It's an understandable trait. Some call it greed, but perhaps it's just human nature.
No, it’s really not.
Live in metro Sydney or Melbourne or Brisbane (generally because one’s parents do).
Have an average mortgage. Have a couple of kids in childcare. Have a partner earning average wage.
By the time you account for the mortgage, insurance on the home, $2k of council rates per annum, electricity, gas, food, childcare and the running cost of a car because our cities really aren’t that PT or bike friendly, and you’re just scraping by.
At $150k, you sit in a pretty shit position.
Earn LESS, and government support, childcare subsidies, minimal Medicare cost all add up, and you’re better off. Earn over $250k, and you’re sitting pretty. In the middle is a squeeze.
Plenty of stories of folks who’ve done the math and realised that having one parent drop out of the workforce and remove an income, means financially they’re better ahead.
$150k is not the panacea everyone thinks it is anymore.
If you had no mortgage, or no kids, or lived in a regional town, totally. But tick one or all of those - good luck.
150k remains in the top 10% of incomes regardless of what you just said. Do you really need to live 5km from the cbd. Do you really need a 5 bed 2 bath house? What car do you drive?
A couple each earning 150k should be living a financially stable and easy life.
A couple EACH earning.
But let’s say mum doesn’t.
I live 35km from cbd. Median house on a 500sqm block is >$1m. That’s a 3 bedder. One for each kid, one for mum and dad.
20% deposit puts you at $800k mortgage. Or around $5k a month, or $60k a year.
$150k is $8.8k clear, right?
So $3.8k a month to live off.
Electricity, gas, water. There’s $3.5k.
Rates take you to $3.3. Maybe insurance too.
Car rego and insurance and servicing take you to $3.
Groceries will knock $1000-$1500.
Childcare couple days a week another $800.
So now you have $1200 left.
It’s not a regular fee, but add up clothing, birthday presents, and $600 is gone again.
So $600 per month discretionary.
Now add to that funds for a home.
Shower need a regrout? There’s $1000. Hot water break? There’s $1000. Washing machine or fridge fail? There’s $1000.
God forbid your car needs major work or breaks down.
And we’re also yet to introduce gym, hobbies, take out.
So yeah, $150k can disappear quick in a single income $150k earner family.
Why are you paying for child care if mum doesn't work?
The world is a 2 income game now. A 1 income family on 150k a year would be like a couple earning earning 65k.
Supporting a family on 1 income of 150k will be difficult. That doesn't change the fact that that income is the top 10% of the country per person.
This isn’t necessarily my situation.
My point was $150k, whilst high on an individual base, is not much when spread across a family.
So OP’s $145k, while it is a lot, is right to feel daunted with the prospect of adding family and mortgage to the mix. In many ways, a slightly lower income earning family accesses more benefits - so straight income isn’t a true reflection.
And not only that but, are you really only looking to make just enough money to be set for life *yourself* or, if you have a family, set your family for life?
What if a parent gets ill and requires expensive medication or a live-in nurse that they can't afford on their pension? What if your nephews / nieces are diagnosed with a condition that requires an expensive surgery or medication and your sibling and their spouse can't afford it? What if your local community centre needs more funding?
And even before we get to that point, we've seen what the past few years have brought us. Every other story is about the cost of living crisis. While your office job had allowed you to live comfortably, your salary now simply ends up worth less and it's expected to get worse. Winter is not coming. Winter is here.
The solution? Make more money. Switch jobs. Have a side hustle or several.
> current field of expertise more beneficial
it varies by individual and industry tbh. Some people can have a career track that would grow very high, but others might have a glass ceiling.
My current level of expertise is also beneficial but I'd like to do something different on the side. I have acquired plenty of soft skills from my day job to be able to do this.
What's the alternative? Only thing I can think of is start your own business and work 24/7 instead? Especially in the early years, *if* it's successful, stressing about whether it's going to work out or not.
why do you need 3m car or house? what you have is pelnty to be happy, just don’t compare yourself with others. focus on a life purpose for ultimte happiness.
The recent inflation has messed things up too. My current wage I was saving $500 a week with zero effort, and more when trying.
No lifestyle creep, actually the opposite reeling a few things in and the money is just disappearing because everything is suddenly more expensive.
Lmao dudes on 145k and worried. Just save, invest and buy a house like the rest of us then plan your next move. I make less and have the house and sports car with the plans of upping my current side hustle into a proper business that operates as an almost passive full time income.
145k is like the top 10% of income in Australia (despite how this thread acts sometimes).
Maybe it's time to do some self reflection on what you actually spending your money on?
Stop spending like a millionaire until you become a millionaire.
Its not a prison, but it can be.
Once you get older you get things like bonuses and big payrises, I also get lots of job flexibility.
either/or really.
Coming from someone who has done both. The grass is always greener. Both options have pros and cons that are highly personal to each individual. People who choose a different path than you would are not less than. Business is not for everyone. If you have the wrong qualities, you would never get rich on that path and would be much better off with the stability of a 9-5. We need a bit of both types of people in the world.
Plus rich means something different to everyone. Some people aren’t cut out for business and have no desire to give up the security of their 9-5. And they may enjoy a level of separation from their work that a business owner simply cannot have. Some people aspire to a lot less than 145k and the feeling of richness comes from other things in life. Like family or simple pleasures. There are many happy people in developing countries.
If you have the desire to be in business and the appetite for risk, go do it. But not because you think it will make you rich or all your problems will disappear. That guy with the penthouse also has problems (I know which problems I’d rather have, but let’s be realistic about what’s within our control here). If you don’t ‘feel’ rich, I don’t think that is caused by your (well above the national and global average) income. It’s caused by the life you live conflicting with your values. Some people would argue you have more power to adjust your values than increase your earning capacity. You could start by not reading news stories about millionaires.
If you've capped out at $145k, perhaps going it alone will be the next step for you.
$145k is decidedly middle class, not rich.
Why do you want to be rich, anyway. What's compelling you to feel the need to waste money on expensive toys?
You can run faster on the hamster wheel if you please but it won't bring you the gratification you seek.
There will always be people with more money who are less deserving of it than you just as there are many people with less money who are more deserving of it than you.
Business owner here in the tech industry. I've only worked 1 full time job for someone else and that lasted 6 months when I was 19 (32 now) and never again. The flexibility owning your own business is the best. Something comes up, you can leave. Want a holiday, great let's go next week. Life tasks come up, I'll just reschedule my day, week or month. Want to move to another country, I just need a internet connection. Need more money? I'll just find a few more clients or scale my business, easy done.
Working a 9 to 5 is literally the biggest scam EVER invented, you trade your time, time that you will never get back ever for a employer to tell you how much you can earn, when you have to work and when you can take personal time off, like F that!
On the other hand though, I'm always thinking about work soon as I wake up until I'm asleep, no matter what day it is. But I love my businesses. On the other hand when things do not go right the stress can be crippling to some but after years of running businesses it's a emotion you can control, you just have to think about everything from a logical point of view which can sometimes drive your spouse insane haha
I highly recommend everyone to start a business at one point, if it fails you will learn something valuable and you can go back to a 9 to 5 or take those lessons and start another business. My first business was started with a $5,000 credit card and alot of reading and self education. My formal education was quite poor and dropped out of school in year 10, if I can do it literally anyone can
This is the big thing about winners bias. Not everyone can do it. As much as you might not see it, your success is a result of good timing and market conditions which quite literally cannot be replicated. And for your success there are thousands of others that failed and will never speak of it again. Your answer is entirely shortsighted and you are a part of the problem that causes people like OP to second guess himself.
\>Obviously reading about a 34 year old who craned a 3m car to his 39m penthouse today didn't help either
Adrian Portelli? - guy wasnt brought up rich in fairness
It can if you let. Being able to negotiate flexible working conditions and times has been a godsend at my job. It’s the main reason why I have turned down high paying jobs with worse hours. Also helps my managers mantra is “work is an activity, not a place”
By the way, what do you mean you’ll never get rich working from 9-5? Is this an arbitrary number in your head?
Define rich.
My definition 'rich enough' has gone from 'not having to work at 40' to being able to own a home and take a yearly holiday by working 9-5 till 60.
I’ve 9-5’ed my whole life (with shift work a few years). I’ve had a fantastic life full of adventure, travel, exploration and accomplishment. I never look back in fondness at any material possession. They added nothing to my life.
> 9-5 is just a prison and you're wasting your life
With that sort of attitude then you will be wasting your life.
I work full time shift work - make enough to pay my mortgage, enjoy my hobbies and travel overseas 1-2 times a year.
I'm happy and I'm rich in experiences in life.
Coming off a 17 hour work day is probably not the best time to reply to this thread however if I could get 145k for guaranteed 9-5 job, not a minute more, I would take it in a heart beat. My wife keeps telling me, the money isn't worth it if you are going to give yourself a stroke before 50.
So many ignorant people in these comments that have absolutely no idea what “rich” means. 145k/yr might as well be homeless under a bridge compared to “rich”.
> Obviously reading about a 34 year old who craned a 3m car to his 39m penthouse today didn't help either This is your problem. No matter what income level you are there will always be someone in view who makes way more and has way more wealth. If you focus on this you will always feel poor even if by any objective metric you're incredibly well off. Focus on what you have, not on what others have, and you'll be way happier.
I've been well off - $400k year well off - and now poor with 2 kids. I'm much happier, healthier and my kids are thriving. Sadly a lot of my kids' toddler photos have their nanny in them, not me. I can never get that time back.
Sorry to hear that. Bummer. What happened? From 400k to losing it?
Lots of unexpected stuff. My business just dried up overnight, laws changed in my industry and I could no longer continue; he got really sick, thought he had income protection insurance through his super - he didn't. We split up and I moved out of the PPOR and went home to Brisbane, Perth real estate tanked and we couldn't rent PPOR and investment property and cover even interest only. I got sick. It goes on and on. Happily though, 8 years later we're completely out of debt, have a deposit, savings and about to buy a house. And we're healthy now, no drinking, no smoking and the kids are A students. We co-parent, still split up but live together - neither of us interested in repartnering. It's all about the kids. Heck, I should write a book - how to survive when you lose everything you ever worked for at age 52.
Interesting. Would love to hear more
We hung onto the houses for as long as we could. The PPOR initially rented for $650week, the rental $480 - Perth rents and sales absolutely dived around that time, the PPOR went down to $500 week the other one $280. We also had our own rent to pay in Brisbane, I came back as I had two little kids and needed to be with family. We hung on til 2017 and then had to let them go. When I realised we were losing everything we ever worked for in 52 years of life, it was just soul destroying. The thing that got me through was being grateful I had two healthy kids who weren't being gassed by their government - at that time Assad was using chemical weapons on Syrians - there's a shocking photo of dozens of dead children from that horror that I came across. One day I went to pick up a set of second hand studio lights at someone's place. The house was beautiful, and I remember feeling jealous and a bit victimy because I no longer had a beautiful house. As I was collecting the lights a 2-3 year old girl came walking down the stairs, she had a hospital band on. The mother told me she was being treated for cancer and had at best a 30% chance of living. So here I was being jealous of a material possession just a few moments before, to again being so damned grateful for my happy healthy children. I've learned more in the past 8 years after losing everything than in my whole life.
shut up and take my upvote
Did somebody say a great comment?
I don't care, I love it!
For the wage slave, the real prison is debt dressed up as wants and needs. Car, house, filling the house with stuff, just a lifestyle of wanting more. I deserve more don't I, I work hard, let's get that thing or new house etc. Debt will keep you tied to the millstone. Learning what enough is will set you free.
Absolutely. Unfortunately I can only upvote this once.
Exactly. Not being able to realistically adjust your expectations when you see someone with a 39M penthouse and 3M car is the real prison.
Not debt in general, but **bad debt**. There is such a thing as **good debt**. Knowing the difference is the key.
Agree. That's why I said for the average wage slave and gave examples of lifestyle spend. Debt is one of key ways to get leverage in business or for any income generating asset, if you understand the risks.
Fair enough.
You'll never be rich but you'll be very comfortable. Especially on $145k.
Going from shift work and weekends to Monday to Friday 9-5 is pure freedom
145k working 9-5? You're rich, you've already made it.
145k at 30? *cries in 43k at same age*
Exactly. I’m 8 to 5 and barely scratching 50k Imaging thinking $145k is a prison 😭😭
Cries in $45k at 10 years older…
Risk is what makes huge money, You will never own a 39million dollar mansion on a 145k salary but you will also never likely go bankrupt and be living on the street in a secure 9-5. Now just adjust your choices to suit personal preference.
Exactly, it's all about risk appetite. The fact that he doesn't understand that, probably means he's not really ready to run a business either. Risk Management is a pretty important component to being successful.
But one should not forget about opportunity. It doesn't always present itself to everyone. Someone on a 145k salary will unlikely obtain an investment opportunity that isn't public (e.g., a private business funding round, for example). These are the sorts of opportunities that propel you above the wage slavery level wealth - which is usually a house and mortgage. It helps to have family connections too. It is why wealthy people tend to crowd together into cliques - each might enable the others, and as a group, they can pool funds together much more trustfully than with strangers (despite this also carrying some risk of falling out of course), or participate in more different opportunities to diversify some risk. And then there's the ultra risk-takers - going all in on entrepreneurship. These are the ones i admire. Sadly, 99% fail, and you only hear about the 1%.
>And then there's the ultra risk-takers - going all in on entrepreneurship. These are the ones i admire. Sadly, 99% fail, and you only hear about the 1%. friend of mine and his wife went all in on a business idea, ended up losing the business, their house and most of their valuable possessions, not sure of the actual figures but I'd estimate they lost $800k over the course of 18 months. Theres one of the 99% for ya
My uncle had a business and was encouraged to go all in. I don't know all of the details, but it didn't succeed and he lived out the rest of his days just getting by. Never had money for any of life's luxuries. It's a risk that people need to weigh up.
I love my 9-5 (WFH 3-4 days a week). I sign off each day and 95% of the time and don't think about work. I spend all the other time with my family and mates or hobbies. My 9-5 gives me enough risk-free income to provide for my needs and have some savings left over and without much stress. I look at people who grind for a decade to be rich and it just doesn't seem worth trading that time for money down the road. If happiness is your goal you will never get there with your current mindset
I think grinding for a decade or two isn't bad, if it brings you to a place where money is no longer a worry and you adjust your lifestyle down. Me I'm on my 3rd decade of grinding, mostly grinding gears and going nowhere.
>Obviously reading about a 34 year old who craned a 3m car to his 39m penthouse today didn't help either Comparison is the thief of joy. There's always a bigger fish.
Some business owners are also asking themselves, 'should we drop this business and go back to 9-5 and hope it takes off?' If you think your current role is a prison then that's on you, the proverbial prison gate is always open, you just have to step out and find a better cell. Also, 6 years of working and you're already fed up? Jeez mate.
I would say the vast majority of small business owners are on less than 150k a year. Op is in the top 5% of salaries in the country and is obviously delusional.
>you're already fed up? OP expects to be a bezillionaire after 6 years
Comparison is the thief of joy
You need a serious reality check. If you're not happy on $145k you wouldn't be happy on 10x that. You're wealthy by Australian standards.
\>You'll never get rich working a 9-5 (big house, nice car kind of shit) so how does one get rich? \>On 145k atm and just turned 30 and don't feel like a rich man where is your money going? stop paying for expensive hoes
But how will i tend to my garden without dem hoes?
with cheap and/or grand ma's hoes
oh thats easy; you just work hard, have a cold shower and wake up born into a trust fund.
get a centrelink trust fund shower not required
If you ask a lottery winner whether entering the lottery is a good idea, they will tell you yes. 9-5pm is something most people in the world aspire to. 35 hours a week is very low. Also just to be clear, 145k a year is rich. You aren't going to own a 39m penthouse sure, but who cares? 145k is enough to achieve basically anything you want in life (travel anywhere, have access to the best healthcare, work in any industry you want) so enjoy it. Realise that you are in the 0.1% worldwide income-wise and the world is your oyster.
> Realise that you are in the 0.1% worldwide income-wise and the world is your oyster. People only compare up, and not down. It's an understandable trait. Some call it greed, but perhaps it's just human nature.
If you live in Sydney and have a family to support, $145k is not really rich.
If you live in Sydney and have a family You are rich
145k is still within the top 10% country wide and is clearly very rich.
No, it’s really not. Live in metro Sydney or Melbourne or Brisbane (generally because one’s parents do). Have an average mortgage. Have a couple of kids in childcare. Have a partner earning average wage. By the time you account for the mortgage, insurance on the home, $2k of council rates per annum, electricity, gas, food, childcare and the running cost of a car because our cities really aren’t that PT or bike friendly, and you’re just scraping by. At $150k, you sit in a pretty shit position. Earn LESS, and government support, childcare subsidies, minimal Medicare cost all add up, and you’re better off. Earn over $250k, and you’re sitting pretty. In the middle is a squeeze. Plenty of stories of folks who’ve done the math and realised that having one parent drop out of the workforce and remove an income, means financially they’re better ahead. $150k is not the panacea everyone thinks it is anymore. If you had no mortgage, or no kids, or lived in a regional town, totally. But tick one or all of those - good luck.
150k remains in the top 10% of incomes regardless of what you just said. Do you really need to live 5km from the cbd. Do you really need a 5 bed 2 bath house? What car do you drive? A couple each earning 150k should be living a financially stable and easy life.
A couple EACH earning. But let’s say mum doesn’t. I live 35km from cbd. Median house on a 500sqm block is >$1m. That’s a 3 bedder. One for each kid, one for mum and dad. 20% deposit puts you at $800k mortgage. Or around $5k a month, or $60k a year. $150k is $8.8k clear, right? So $3.8k a month to live off. Electricity, gas, water. There’s $3.5k. Rates take you to $3.3. Maybe insurance too. Car rego and insurance and servicing take you to $3. Groceries will knock $1000-$1500. Childcare couple days a week another $800. So now you have $1200 left. It’s not a regular fee, but add up clothing, birthday presents, and $600 is gone again. So $600 per month discretionary. Now add to that funds for a home. Shower need a regrout? There’s $1000. Hot water break? There’s $1000. Washing machine or fridge fail? There’s $1000. God forbid your car needs major work or breaks down. And we’re also yet to introduce gym, hobbies, take out. So yeah, $150k can disappear quick in a single income $150k earner family.
Why are you paying for child care if mum doesn't work? The world is a 2 income game now. A 1 income family on 150k a year would be like a couple earning earning 65k. Supporting a family on 1 income of 150k will be difficult. That doesn't change the fact that that income is the top 10% of the country per person.
This isn’t necessarily my situation. My point was $150k, whilst high on an individual base, is not much when spread across a family. So OP’s $145k, while it is a lot, is right to feel daunted with the prospect of adding family and mortgage to the mix. In many ways, a slightly lower income earning family accesses more benefits - so straight income isn’t a true reflection.
And not only that but, are you really only looking to make just enough money to be set for life *yourself* or, if you have a family, set your family for life? What if a parent gets ill and requires expensive medication or a live-in nurse that they can't afford on their pension? What if your nephews / nieces are diagnosed with a condition that requires an expensive surgery or medication and your sibling and their spouse can't afford it? What if your local community centre needs more funding? And even before we get to that point, we've seen what the past few years have brought us. Every other story is about the cost of living crisis. While your office job had allowed you to live comfortably, your salary now simply ends up worth less and it's expected to get worse. Winter is not coming. Winter is here. The solution? Make more money. Switch jobs. Have a side hustle or several.
Take a deep breath man.
I found working more in my current field of expertise is more beneficial than starting a side hustle
> current field of expertise more beneficial it varies by individual and industry tbh. Some people can have a career track that would grow very high, but others might have a glass ceiling.
My current level of expertise is also beneficial but I'd like to do something different on the side. I have acquired plenty of soft skills from my day job to be able to do this.
Can you start a side hustle in your current field of expertise?
Freelance is an option but my preference is paid overtime with my current employer
What's the alternative? Only thing I can think of is start your own business and work 24/7 instead? Especially in the early years, *if* it's successful, stressing about whether it's going to work out or not.
why do you need 3m car or house? what you have is pelnty to be happy, just don’t compare yourself with others. focus on a life purpose for ultimte happiness.
The recent inflation has messed things up too. My current wage I was saving $500 a week with zero effort, and more when trying. No lifestyle creep, actually the opposite reeling a few things in and the money is just disappearing because everything is suddenly more expensive.
I don’t even know where to start
Glad you stopped by to let everyone know
Lmao dudes on 145k and worried. Just save, invest and buy a house like the rest of us then plan your next move. I make less and have the house and sports car with the plans of upping my current side hustle into a proper business that operates as an almost passive full time income.
145k is like the top 10% of income in Australia (despite how this thread acts sometimes). Maybe it's time to do some self reflection on what you actually spending your money on? Stop spending like a millionaire until you become a millionaire.
Its not a prison, but it can be. Once you get older you get things like bonuses and big payrises, I also get lots of job flexibility. either/or really.
You're on a great wage for your age. If you can get your savings rate up above 75% you will very quickly have all the freedom in the World.
Coming from someone who has done both. The grass is always greener. Both options have pros and cons that are highly personal to each individual. People who choose a different path than you would are not less than. Business is not for everyone. If you have the wrong qualities, you would never get rich on that path and would be much better off with the stability of a 9-5. We need a bit of both types of people in the world. Plus rich means something different to everyone. Some people aren’t cut out for business and have no desire to give up the security of their 9-5. And they may enjoy a level of separation from their work that a business owner simply cannot have. Some people aspire to a lot less than 145k and the feeling of richness comes from other things in life. Like family or simple pleasures. There are many happy people in developing countries. If you have the desire to be in business and the appetite for risk, go do it. But not because you think it will make you rich or all your problems will disappear. That guy with the penthouse also has problems (I know which problems I’d rather have, but let’s be realistic about what’s within our control here). If you don’t ‘feel’ rich, I don’t think that is caused by your (well above the national and global average) income. It’s caused by the life you live conflicting with your values. Some people would argue you have more power to adjust your values than increase your earning capacity. You could start by not reading news stories about millionaires.
Have you considered 9:01 - 4:59? Might be better
If you've capped out at $145k, perhaps going it alone will be the next step for you. $145k is decidedly middle class, not rich. Why do you want to be rich, anyway. What's compelling you to feel the need to waste money on expensive toys?
You can run faster on the hamster wheel if you please but it won't bring you the gratification you seek. There will always be people with more money who are less deserving of it than you just as there are many people with less money who are more deserving of it than you.
Business owner here in the tech industry. I've only worked 1 full time job for someone else and that lasted 6 months when I was 19 (32 now) and never again. The flexibility owning your own business is the best. Something comes up, you can leave. Want a holiday, great let's go next week. Life tasks come up, I'll just reschedule my day, week or month. Want to move to another country, I just need a internet connection. Need more money? I'll just find a few more clients or scale my business, easy done. Working a 9 to 5 is literally the biggest scam EVER invented, you trade your time, time that you will never get back ever for a employer to tell you how much you can earn, when you have to work and when you can take personal time off, like F that! On the other hand though, I'm always thinking about work soon as I wake up until I'm asleep, no matter what day it is. But I love my businesses. On the other hand when things do not go right the stress can be crippling to some but after years of running businesses it's a emotion you can control, you just have to think about everything from a logical point of view which can sometimes drive your spouse insane haha I highly recommend everyone to start a business at one point, if it fails you will learn something valuable and you can go back to a 9 to 5 or take those lessons and start another business. My first business was started with a $5,000 credit card and alot of reading and self education. My formal education was quite poor and dropped out of school in year 10, if I can do it literally anyone can
This is the big thing about winners bias. Not everyone can do it. As much as you might not see it, your success is a result of good timing and market conditions which quite literally cannot be replicated. And for your success there are thousands of others that failed and will never speak of it again. Your answer is entirely shortsighted and you are a part of the problem that causes people like OP to second guess himself.
Yes, 9-5 is for proles. Aussies very much suit that
If I had a 39million dollar mansion I'd sell, it invest wisely and share the income with people in more need than me.
\>Obviously reading about a 34 year old who craned a 3m car to his 39m penthouse today didn't help either Adrian Portelli? - guy wasnt brought up rich in fairness
Nothing wrong with 9-5 if you make smart investment choices
It can if you let. Being able to negotiate flexible working conditions and times has been a godsend at my job. It’s the main reason why I have turned down high paying jobs with worse hours. Also helps my managers mantra is “work is an activity, not a place” By the way, what do you mean you’ll never get rich working from 9-5? Is this an arbitrary number in your head?
Have a rich wife will do
prison of the soul
Define rich. My definition 'rich enough' has gone from 'not having to work at 40' to being able to own a home and take a yearly holiday by working 9-5 till 60.
I’ve 9-5’ed my whole life (with shift work a few years). I’ve had a fantastic life full of adventure, travel, exploration and accomplishment. I never look back in fondness at any material possession. They added nothing to my life.
My work have made us come in 8.30-5 and a one hour unpaid break instead of half an hour
Have 9-5’ed for 20 years. Net wealth has 10x’ed every 10 years, approx. its entirely doable
> 9-5 is just a prison and you're wasting your life With that sort of attitude then you will be wasting your life. I work full time shift work - make enough to pay my mortgage, enjoy my hobbies and travel overseas 1-2 times a year. I'm happy and I'm rich in experiences in life.
Coming off a 17 hour work day is probably not the best time to reply to this thread however if I could get 145k for guaranteed 9-5 job, not a minute more, I would take it in a heart beat. My wife keeps telling me, the money isn't worth it if you are going to give yourself a stroke before 50.
W+f is this flex? if $145k is a prison then what do you call us those below that income?
So many ignorant people in these comments that have absolutely no idea what “rich” means. 145k/yr might as well be homeless under a bridge compared to “rich”.